


moving forwards.

by RainHolmes



Category: POKEMON Detective Pikachu (2019)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Harry Needs a Hug, Harry Tries His Best, Post-Canon, Reconciliation, They're both messes, Tim deserves a partner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-06-06 08:02:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19440448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainHolmes/pseuds/RainHolmes
Summary: tim comes home with a cubone. harry tries not to reflect on what this might mean.pokédex entry #104: cubone pines for the mother it will never see again. seeing a likeness of its mother in the full moon, it cries. the stains on the skull the pokémon wears are made by the tears it sheds.





	moving forwards.

**Author's Note:**

> short but sweet right? inspired by the fact that i q like that lil sassy cubone from the film and cannot ignore the parallels !!! tim deserves a pokémon partner #justicefortim

Harry whistles as he walks through Ryme City, Pikachu on his shoulder, coffee in his hand. It’s a beautiful day anyway, but everything seems a little bit brighter this morning. Tim is finally coming back to the city, after a week away where he went home to “sort out some things.” At least that’s the vague reasoning that Tim threw out before he left for the train- Harry took it to mean pick up some clothes and let grams know what’s going on, and maybe formally quit his insurance job (which Harry also can’t think about without shuddering- insurance, how boring). Either way, it had only been one week since the Mewtwo incident and Harry was left alone again. This had led to an unbelievably boring week- he had officially been given work leave, because apparently un-dying involves a lot of paperwork and maybe also some stress related time off work. But he’s pretty sure it wasn’t needed. As such instead of being able to distract himself by devoting all his time to cases, he was left having to stew over everything that had happened. 

He’s unbelievably happy that Tim is finally talking to him again, and that they’re reconnecting. He honestly believed at this point that there was no way to fix their relationship. Of course, he regrets almost dying, and putting Tim through thinking he was gone, but he can’t help but think that it was worth it. He’s not one hundred percent sure what he said to Tim as a pikachu (the memories are blurry, with him only remembering vague moments) but he would do it all again to get his son back in his life. They never should’ve drifted apart, and Harry has spent years regretting it, and wondering how he could’ve changed things. After his wife died he was so lost in his own grief that he unintentionally abandoned Tim to deal with everything himself, pushing his only son away.

Even now, with Tim back by his side, he worries that it won’t last, and that he’ll mess it up all over again. Tim had promised to be back by the end of the week, but a little voice in the back of Harry’s head wonders if he wouldn’t change his mind once he got back home. He’s had to resist phoning Tim to check how things are going, but left in the apartment by himself with no distractions, it was difficult to think about anything else.

He’d lasted about two days before he’d ended up at the station, begging Hideo to give him a case. He’d be happy to rescue any pokémon stuck up trees at this point. The man had looked at him shrewdly over his computer and told Harry to stop worrying. He always did know how to read him too well. When he’d first moved here Hideo had been one of the first friends he’d actually made, and had supported him through his grief, as well as pain at also losing contact with Tim.

The man had taken him out to coffee that lunchtime, Snubbull and Pikachu both sitting beside them, dozing contently in the sun. Harry had been aware that he was essentially being babysat, but he was also so bored of being stuck in the flat that he couldn’t even pretend not to be grateful at doing something.

“Tim’s going to come back,” Hideo had reassured him, stirring his coffee steadily, always the voice of reason. “He booked a return ticket. Besides, he’s already enrolled for his detective training modules. Everything is being set up for his new life here, and he seems excited by it. Why would he go back home?”

Harry had remained silent, bouncing his leg nervously. Tim _was_ excited to be here. That didn’t mean that he’d actually forgiven Harry for essentially leaving him behind at probably one of the worst moments of his life.

Hideo sighed at the silence, “Harry, at the end of the day, you can’t change what’s already happened. Tim is here now, and he clearly cares about you. You have to forgive yourself and just embrace the present.”

Harry knew that Hideo was right. Nevertheless, just because he knew that didn’t meant the anxiety went away. Even now as he walks through the station to find Tim’s train, as per the information that Tim himself had texted earlier, Harry was stressing that there would be no one getting off the train for him to collect. 

He doesn’t have long to worry however, as Pikachu jumps off his shoulder with a bright _pika_ and runs off towards the platform, where the train has pulled up and the doors opened. Harry follows behind him, smiling as he catches sight of Tim dragging a giant suitcase behind him, cooing happily at Pikachu who immediately climbed up onto his shoulder.

Tim looks up as Harry finally reaches him, and his face instantly brightens.

“Dad!” He greets excitedly, with a flicker of relief in his eyes, reaching out to give him a hug. It seems Harry wasn’t the only one who was worrying over the past week.

“Hi kiddo,” he greets, hugging Tim back as tightly as he can get away with, pretending his eyes aren’t a little bit wet.

Something gives a little growl, interrupting the moment.

Harry pulls back, frowning. What the…

Tim startles a little, a mischievous grin suddenly on his face.

“I almost forgot for a moment there!” He pulls his rucksack off and in front of him, revealing a small Cubone sitting inside, head poking up out of the top. It gives another small growl and shakes the bone in its hand warily at Harry, suspicious of who this new person is. “Meet Cubone! My new partner.” Tim looks at Harry expectantly, eager for his response.

Pikachu sniffs curiously at the small pokémon. Cubone yelps back at him. Pikachu, seemingly deciding he likes the newcomer, gives a friendly chirp, and rubs his face against it, surprising the Cubone into startled, but apparently pleased silence.

Harry, who was taken aback at seeing the pokémon decides this is his cue to say something and smiles back at Tim, “You found a partner! That’s great kid. Cubones aren't too big so your partner should be able to adapt to the apartment okay too.”

Tim seems relieved at his approval and relaxes, “That’s good- I was worrying about space for him on the train over.”

Harry shakes his head at this, “No, he’s perfectly welcome of course! I’m just glad that you’re back.” He still can’t quite believe that Tim is here and real, and pats his shoulder, hoping it conveys his affections and gratification.

He grabs the suitcase from Tim, leaving his son free to juggle Pikachu on his shoulder and Cubone in his arms. He shouldn’t be surprised that Pikachu has chosen to sit with Tim- his partner had sensed Harry’s anxiety and had already grown quickly attached to Tim, as such seeming equally as relieved to have him back.

The walk to the apartment isn’t long but it is enough time for Harry to take a moment to consider Tim’s new partner. He is very happy that Tim had found himself one- upon learning that Tim had given up on pokémon training completely Harry had been quite disappointed. He remembered how as a kid Tim’s eyes had brightened anytime he saw any kind of pokémon. It just seemed wrong for him to live a life without that spark.

However, Harry had been initially surprised to see that Tim’s new partner was a Cubone, despite not letting any sign of this become obvious to Tim. He’d always imagined that Tim would end up with a strong, bold partner like Pikachu (which had been one of Tim’s favourites as a kid) or something like a Charmander or Squirtle. He doesn’t know much about Cubones but what he does remember is that they are meant to be lonely, and also quite sad personality wise. He can’t help but wonder if this reflects anything about Tim’s life. He’s not being judgemental- he’s just concerned, and as always, worries that he has somehow managed to screw his son’s life up even more than he thought he had.

“-and then we can maybe set him up a place to sleep after that, right Dad?” He startles at Tim asking him something. Apparently he missed a whole discussion while he was ruminating. 

It’s fine however. He knows that whatever Tim is asking about, he’ll be willing to help with.

“Of course,” he replies. He’s sure he’ll find out later what Tim was thinking of doing. The kid is full of bright ideas, being practical and organised (the latter Harry is certain came from his mum and not him).

When they both reach the flat, Harry helps Tim with the suitcase up the stairs, and unlocks the flat door, welcoming Tim home. It had previously felt empty this past week, but now with Tim back it feels right. 

He sets about making himself and Tim some coffee. Tim smiles and thanks him as he sets about moving his stuff and Cubone into his room. 

Once done with the coffee Harry busies himself with some leftover paperwork that he managed to wheedle out of Hideo. Tim mentions that he’s going to take a shower and Harry gives him a smile and a nod.

While Tim gets ready for the evening. Harry finds himself brooding again. He knows so little about Tim’s life before this that he can’t help it. Tim had gone from wanting to be a pokémon trainer to becoming an insurance guy- surely Harry’s not crazy for wondering if Tim had been fulfilled back home? He doesn’t want to think about Tim being lonely growing up, especially not because of Harry’s mistakes. He also has a feeling there’s something he can’t quite remember about the small pokémon now living in their flat. He’s normally good at remembering pokémon’s backgrounds but he rarely encounters Cubones in the city and he can’t quite grab the specific memory.

He taps his pen restlessly against his knee while he considers it.

_Tap, tap, tap._

His poor impulse control eventually wins out and he reaches for his phone. He unlocks it and flicks through the screens, searching for his pokédex app. It’s not something he often uses, but sometimes on cases he needs a little more specific information about any pokémon involved. Eventually he finds the app and opens it, typing in what he’s looking for.

He’s not expecting the piercing too-happy female voice that comes from the phone, audibly reading out the words now displayed on the screen.

“ _Pokédex entry #104,_ ” it relays, “ _Cubone pines for the mother it will never see again. Seeing a likeness of its mother in the full moon, it cries. The stains on the skull the Pokémon wears are made by the tears it sheds._ ”

Harry frowns at this. He knew there was something else. 

A pokémon that’s grieving for the loss of its mother. That hits too close to home to be a coincidence, surely? 

Of course Tim would be affected by losing his mother as a child- he’s not surprised at that. But he imagines that not having his father around to help can’t have helped things. Harry wonders if Tim holds a grudge against him for this too. Maybe he’d made things even worse than he’d imagined when he left for Ryme City to bury himself in work and forget about his pain.

He chews anxiously on the end of his pen. He could do with Pikachu to absent-mindedly stroke but his partner had run off to help Tim settle in Cubone. Cubone, who now serves as a daily reminder of how badly he’d messed up ten years ago. He has nothing against the little pokémon personally, but he can’t help obsessing over what his presence means. Maybe it’s a sign that Tim will snap out of his post-resurrection affection for Harry and realise that he probably is better off without him again. Harry’s not sure he could really present a strong argument against that, especially with Cubone’s eerily similar backstory indicating the opposite. Pokémon partners are after all, supposed to somewhat reflect their human companion. 

He’s startled out of his thoughts by Tim coming up behind him. He must’ve finished in the shower and been busy in his room without Harry even noticing.

“Cubone’s asleep,” Tim lets him know, puttering about tidying up the kitchen, putting away dishes that Harry had left out to dry, “He and Pikachu have made a little fort under the bed.”

Harry perks up at this.

“Oh- Pikachu used to do that when I first got him and he was just a little Pichu.” He tells Tim, tone turning fond at the memory, “It’s adorable until you can’t find any of your blankets or pillows and realise they’re all under siege by your pokémon.”

Tim’s eyes widen in interest.

“Oh- so you originally had a Pichu?” At Harry’s nod, he continues, “I’m actually thinking- well… I was hoping that we could maybe see about helping Cubone evolve at some point into a Marowak.” 

Harry is surprised into silence for a moment, not for the first time today.

Tim uncertainly goes on, “Well, I was hoping that you might help me to be honest. I don’t really know that much about evolving pokémon. It’s been years since I even read anything about pokémon care.” He rubs nervously at the back of his neck. “I’d kind of given up on the idea of having a partner.”

Harry’s heart swells in love and concern. He’d do anything for Tim.

“Of course I’ll help kid. I’m sure we’ll be able to do it with some hard work and care- Cubone seems like he has a pretty headstrong character already,” He laughs, thinking about how he had been unruly growled at when they were in the train station. It was something he had overlooked at the time, caught up in his own worries, but now he takes a moment to appreciate that Tim’s Cubone does not seem meek or timid.

Tim was leaning against the counter, arms folded in a relaxed pose, but he pushes himself up excitedly at this.

“That’s great!” He says enthusiastically. “Cubone is amazing but-” He pauses thinking it over, “Well, I just feel like we’ve both been on some sort of journey together since we first met- it was right before I came here and ended up trying to find you. And now, it’s almost like everything has come full circle or something, and I just get the feeling that he’s not really best represented as a little Cubone anymore.”

Tim gives a knowing glance at Harry’s phone, still in his hand. Harry wonders if perhaps he was less obvious than he originally thought about his misgivings. Either way Tim may have heard his pokédex and seems to know what’s running through his brain right now.

“I think a Marowak represents us both better to be honest.” Tim states, coming over to the couch where Harry is sitting. “Cubone...and me too, we both have people looking out for us now, and I’m pretty sure that will only help him evolve into the strongest version of himself. No matter what happened to him in the past. I can sense it.” He nods, clearly certain about this. 

Harry feels a whole range of emotions from proud to love to relief to joy. He doesn’t know what words to say to convey just how he’s feeling to Tim, just how to get across the depth of emotion he feels for him. 

Tim however seems to get it from Harry’s facial expression. He nods at his dad reassuringly, seemingly not needing a response, instead moving towards his bedroom door with a yawn.

“I’m off to sleep for the night anyway- I’m pretty tired after the journey here and everything.”

He opens the door and then pauses, looking back at Harry smiling, almost slyly, but very obviously full of warmth and fondness. 

“You should look up Marowak on your pokédex- it’s pretty accurate you know.” With that he disappears into his room, door closing behind him.

Harry stares at it for a second, sentimental at the knowledge that he can finally think of it as being Tim’s bedroom. 

As he processes Tim’s words he feels slightly abashed at having been worrying so obviously that Tim clearly picked up on it. He’s supposed to be a world-class detective. He picks up his phone again, huffing out a soft laugh. Tim is going to make a great detective. Harry clearly can’t get anything past him. 

As he types in the word Marowak he considers that no matter what comes up, Tim has essentially told him that he forgives him and is grateful to be here. That in itself takes a weight off his shoulders. He begins to feel like he can finally breathe after the last week of worry.

“ _Entry #105,_ ” the same female voice begins to read out as Harry glances down at the screen, “ _A Marowak is the evolved form of a Cubone that has grown tough by overcoming the grief of losing its mother. Its tempered and hardened spirit is not easily broken._ ”

Harry smiles at this, suddenly emotional at the words. Clearly Tim knew what he was doing when he asked Harry for his help evolving Cubone. 

He doesn’t need to worry about Tim- he can take care of himself. He’s not going to be easily broken by anything that gets in his way, and now that he’s in Ryme City, Harry has the pleasure to offer Tim his support, rather than just stressing out over him.

He pushes himself off the sofa and turns off the kitchen light, heading towards his own bedroom. He knows Pikachu will have be waiting for him there after helping Cubone build his fort. Harry doesn’t need to stay up tonight. Tim is fine. His son is back in their apartment, and it feels properly like home for the first time in years.

He can finally sleep peacefully for the first time all week.

**end.**  
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

**Author's Note:**

> hope u enjoyed! such a random oneshot lol but i literally read read cubone's description and was like !exCuse ME! and then marowak made it even better because?? it makes sm sense!
> 
> edit: im adding this in because i see that some ppl are still reading this fic (tysm??) but! if any of u have any requests for detective pikachu fanfic u'd like to see, im interested in taking requests (because i would love to try and write some more stuff for this fandom)- so just let me know :)


End file.
